5 Exercises to STOP Doing (#3 is controversial)

Guest Post

5 Exercises to STOP Doing (#3 is controversial)

By Kate Vidulich

Kettlebells, yoga, CrossFit, high intensity training…

Everywhere you look, people over 30 are doing new and exciting things, trying to recapture their youth.

But there’s a BIG problem.

The exercises below are actually do more harm than good.

Watch out…

#1: Good Mornings

“Really, the worst exercise ever KV?”

Listen, the risk outweighs the benefit of doing this.

Correct manual lifting technique (like when you pick up a large box or child) involves bending your knees, squatting down and keeping the weight you are lifting close to your body.

So why on earth would you want to keep your legs straight, put a barbell on your shoulders behind your neck and then bend over?

#StupidestIdeaEver (yes stupidest is word!)

Seriously, I can feel my back breaking just thinking about this. And if you don’t break your back, there’s a damn good chance of busting your neck.

You will never catch any of my clients doing this exercise – or even thinking about it! There are plenty of other movements you can incorporate into your workout routine to safely target your erector spinae, glutes and hamstrings instead of this one.

#2. Rebound Box Jumps

Don’t get me wrong… box jumps are great for developing power and explosive performance in your lower body. But you must STEP down, not jump off the box. It’s SO dangerous to jump…box jump a b

You’re asking for a serious Achilles tendon injury.

And I hate to break it to you, but we’re not training for the Olympics.

So here’s how to do it without killing yourself:

  1. Use your arms to jump up
  2. Land with soft feet on top of the box (you want to land like a ninja)
  3. Step off
  4. Repeat

Now that wasn’t so crazy, right?

#3. Kipping Pull Ups

This one may not win me some friends…. But that’s OK.

While I’m sure there’s a whole technique to it, a kipping pull up is a glorified way to “cheat” on a standard pull up so you get more reps.pull up controversy

Why do people want to cheat? Beats me. I guess it’s same reason why kids cheat on school tests… to get a higher score!

But looking at the amount of “action” that takes place during a kipping pull up (repetitive lower back hyperextension, as well as the joint distraction forces), it’s just not something worth the risk or effort in my opinion.

For most cool cats, they’re just not ready to do such an advanced movement without hurting themselves.

So would I ever program them for you?

Um, no.

*Side note: Shawna advocates a ‘controlled cheat’ in her Challenge Pull Up program. This is NOT a kipping pull up.

Click HERE to read the ‘Pull Up Controversy

#4. The 45-degree Leg Press Machine

The common argument for using machines at the gym is because it is safer. Are you kidding me? What is so safe about moving in a fixed range of motion?

Research conducted by McGill suggests the 45-degree leg press machine could seriously damage your lower back. Perhaps not today. It’s a cumulative thing. But eventually one day, life will turn nasty when your lower back suddenly starts to give for no particular reason.

McGill explains how this machine can put your lower lumbar discs under serious stress and high risk of disc bulge. The problem is being bent at the waist, at a 45-degree angle and then adding a ton of downward force from the weight on the machine. Basically, the angle increases the opening of the vertebrae at the back, and increases the likelihood of posterior disc bulge.

Bad move. Don’t mess with your discs.

#5. Elliptical + other steady state cardio cardio fail

It’s no surprise this one makes the list.

But in case you didn’t know, it has been discovered that common gym machines OVERESTIMATE the number of calories you burn. That’s right. They LIE to you.

A recent study named the elliptical as the least accurate when it comes to calorie counting, and most machines overestimate calorie burn by a whopping 42%!

Bugger.

The bottom line is… just stay away.

Instead, you can do high intensity interval workouts, like this one below.

This will help you get a GREAT backside, plus you can check your cardio workout off the list.

If you want safe AND effective exercises => Get Accelerator Countdown + 9 more programs

Here’s the workout:

Ladder Accelerator 5: One legged Gauntlet

Equipment: Bodyweight Only

Do the following circuit resting only when needed. If you’re form breaks down, please take a break. Do as many rounds as possible for 6-10 minutes, depending on your fitness level.

Choose Your Level:

Beginner = 6 minutes as many rounds as possible (AMRAP), sub seal jacks for step jacks.

Intermediate = 8 minutes AMRAP

Advanced = 10 minutes AMRAP

A) Single leg walkout x 5 each side, seal jacks x 30
B) Single leg walkout x 4 each side, seal jacks x 25
C) Single leg walkout x 3 each side, seal jacks x 20
D) Single leg walkout x 2 each side, seal jacks x 15
E) Single leg walkout x 1 each side, seal jacks x 10And if you like that workout, you can celebrate your “freedom” from the gym with over a dozen more fat blasting workouts here.

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Kate Vidulich, BSc, ACSM, Master CTT Kate accelerator bundle